After a Year, Florida's Drug Importation Scheme Remains Misguided and Inappropriate
After a Year, Florida's Drug Importation Scheme Remains Misguided and Inappropriate
When President-elect Donald Trump jokingly suggested making Canada the 51st state, an unexpected advocate emerged: Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont.
"Could we adopt Canada's healthcare system and thereby decrease the expense of prescription medications?" Sanders wrote on X. "I'm all for it."
While it's doubtful that Sanders is advocating for a new era of North American domination, he has consistently pushed for the United States to adopt Canada's healthcare system. Specifically, he's been in favor of the country's price regulations for prescription drugs. If that's not possible, Sanders would like to implement these regulations by enabling Americans to purchase drugs directly from Canada.
Interestingly, Sanders isn't alone in this stance. Republican Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida has been lobbying the federal government for years to allow his state to import drugs directly from Canada. In 2024, DeSantis finally received approval. However, Florida has yet to import a single Canadian drug, over four years since DeSantis first proposed this plan and a year after its implementation.
This lack of results might be a silver lining. Drug importation schemes often have bipartisan support, but they may not significantly reduce costs for patients. Moreover, there's no guarantee that these schemes will even work.
DeSantis argued that drugs are cheaper in Canada due to the government's price cap. "Canada has the same drugs, they're like 25 cents on the dollar," DeSantis said earlier this year. "If I can save 25 cents on the dollar, I can save $100 million, $200 million in Florida."
However, this price reduction comes with drawbacks. When governments limit how much companies can charge, these companies invest less in research and development of new drugs. Each new drug costs an average of around $3 billion to develop.
Moreover, companies are less likely to launch new drugs in countries with price controls. Between 2012 and 2021, Canadian patients had access to only 45% of the new drugs introduced worldwide, while American patients had access to 85%.
The potential benefits of importation — reduced drug spending and access to cheaper drugs — may not justify the drawbacks. According to the Congressional Budget Office, a nationwide importation plan that uses more countries than Canada could reduce drug spending by as little as 0.1% to 1% by 2031.
In Florida, the potential savings are even more limited. The state's importation plan only intends to cover Floridians with chronic conditions under the care of four state agencies, including the prison system.
Given the potential drawbacks and limited savings, it's not worth disrupting America's innovative, lifesaving drug development ecosystem for small savings. American patients already have access to affordable generic drugs, which make up 90% of prescriptions filled in the United States and are 80% to 85% cheaper than branded drugs. Moreover, generic drugs tend to be cheaper in the U.S. than in Canada.
In essence, importing drugs from Canada does not seem financially viable, and even Canada agrees. When the Biden administration approved DeSantis's plan, Canadian Health Minister Mark Holland stated that his office would "do everything in our power to ensure that another country cannot exploit our health system for its own benefit."
- Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont advocates for the United States to adopt Canada's price regulations for prescription drugs, which he believes could decrease drug spending in the U.S.
- Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida has been pushing for years to allow his state to import drugs directly from Canada, citing cheaper drug prices due to Canada's government price cap.
- The Biden administration, while approving DeSantis's plan, expressed concern about exploitation of Canada's health system for another country's benefit.
- If a nationwide importation plan were implemented, the Congressional Budget Office suggests it could reduce drug spending by as little as 0.1% to 1% by 2031.
- In Florida, the potential savings from importing drugs are even more limited, as the state's plan only covers Floridians with chronic conditions under the care of four state agencies.